OT FUN at Home
These are my laundry baskets. Not only are they great for carrying the endless loads of laundry to and from the upstairs, but they’re also a great way to give your sensory seeking child some heavy work (proprioceptive work)!
If you have such a child, or even if you’re looking to burn off some pent up energy or just to get a few minutes to write an email or cook dinner, then listen up! We call this game, “The Shopping Game”. It’s a game that I found in “The Out of Sync Child Has Fun” by Carol Kranowitz (If you don’t have this book yet, I would highly recommend purchasing it) and it is perfect during this time of social distancing.
In addition to the crash pad duvet we suggested a few weeks back, this is a great way to get some proprioceptive input while in the home. To play, first you fill the laundry basket with heavy groceries like rice, oatmeal, bags of dried beans, bottles of water, or cans of any kind. Then you set up a “shopping center” for your child. The laundry basket acts like the cart and your child can push the, already heavy, cart around while picking up the other necessary groceries you’ve put out for them (you can always hide them to make the activity last a little longer). The other “necessary” groceries can be things like throw pillows, fidget toys, books, DVDs, and/or any other toy that you have.
This would probably work best on a rug or carpeted floor, I’d be worried about scratching up your hardworking floor, though maybe you’re not?
Pro tip! Not only are you giving your child the heavy work they’re looking for, but your child is also using their visual scanning skills by scanning the room for the groceries. If you make “coupons” (pieces of paper with the items pictured) ahead of time you can work on matching!
Stay safe and healthy and enjoy!